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First Book in the P.I.E.C.E.S series_ Six lives and a load of drama. Tokunbo moves to the great IB city for a fresh start. But somehow she finds herself tangled up in webs of secrets and lies. She knows she isn't supposed to care, but deep within a fragment of herself, she does. Betty, Vicky, Eli and Enoch try to ignore that all is not as it used to be. No one can seem to pull away from their already frail friendship but none can seem to draw closer either. Enter a new kid with issues and a crazy girl hell bent on revenge. Will the crew come out whole or in shards of what they used to be?
CHAPTER ONE
Betty groaned crumpling the poor piece of paper, black mixing irregularly with white. That was the thirteenth sheet gone that day. Once again, she had proved to the forces against her, as well as to herself, that she had no future in poetry.
But it shouldn't be this hard!
Poetry was just 'penning words on paper", "expressing emotions, filling empty blank spaces". It wasn't supposed to be hard. That was what Math and Science were for. Betty let out another groan and threw the whole book to the ground.
"I give up!" she announced to no one in particular.
She agreed with her father now. Either poetry was dumb and useless, or it just wasn't made for her. Betty could bet naira notes that it was the second option.
Yes, that was it!
Poetry wasn't for her. The first option however would imply calling Shakespeare a dummy- but Betty adored him. She had a whole drawer dedicated to him. Calling him a dummy was similar to committing suicide.
She slouched in the armchair staring at all the pieces of paper, frustrated, on the floor. She wanted to know poetry. She needed to if she wanted to apply for the 'All States Writing Contest' coming up in three months.
Like I could still do that.
Her dad had made up his mind. Against her favour. Writing was for lazy ones, it fed no one. He had told her. He'd rather she held the highest sticks in the market. A doctor, a lawyer, a petroleum engineer, The big jobs. However, Betty couldn't help but feel he was wrong. She loved writing. It was a passion. Her passion. What happened to the words she'd heard on TV and watched in movies?
"What happened to following my dreams?" she muttered sadly, tears nearing her eyes as frustration took over.
A moving van cut the brewing tempestuousness inside her short, attracting curious eyes as it drove into the compound. Betty face palmed as she had forgotten the new neighbours would be arriving that day. She rose quickly, ridding the floor of the mess she had created.
"Mom! The neighbours are here! And please come out quickly! Those nasty kids downstairs are at it again." She yelled and soon enough, her mother stumbled out of the house, clad in a wrapper and T-shirt, ready to shun the 'Devil Twins' and their siblings back into their house.
But there was no need for that because all of them reversed slowly when a man stepped down from the car.
"Wow," Betty whispered
"Aye o." her mother exclaimed, placing a hand on her chest as all eyes beheld the commanding figure before them.
Just who were the new neighbours exactly?
A few pairs of legs dropped from the van too. A pregnant woman, a tall kid with braided hair, and a smaller boy.
Betty watched the man take slow strides looking around the compound in scrutiny and noticed his face morph into a sneer when his gaze landed on the nasty kids.
Ha! Take that Devil twins!
But when he looked up, she knew why those kids had flinched in fear and scattered like chickens. The man had a commanding stance, a domineering figure. His eyes were steely. He had a scar near his left eye that spelt 'WICKED'.
"Olorun mi o" Her mother exclaimed again taking a few steps backwards. "Which kind man be this ?" she asked in pidgin English.
The man walked over to his wife assisting her towards the stairs while throwing directions at the movers, his children trailing behind him. They greeted no one. Not even a small nod or a look of acknowledgement. Even after they had disappeared into the confines of their flat, the one next to Betty's, Everyone stood still for a while before dispersing with shrugs and sighs of contempt.
Betty stared on and on from across the side balcony.
***
Tokunbo.
Tokunbo looked around the house; White ceilings, the peach and green walls. She wasn't sure how she felt about them moving. It had been all too soon, all too sudden but it was good. She needed a change of scenery anyways.
And to run away.
She was more than ready to start anew. Not like there were major changes to make, but a girl could try.
"At least I have another chance." She whispered to herself as she toured the rooms, closing her eyes at intervals, trying to ward off unwanted thoughts. Too many things had happened, but there was no way she would allow sour memories to spoil her new beginning. No!
"Get the other things from the van, Tokun. Don't just stand there!"
"Yes papa," she replied dashing away from her father's presence. A smile formed on her face as she remembered the look of horror on the kids' faces earlier. One of them had even whispered 'Commando' before flying away.
"I'd like the pink bag please?" she told one of the movers flashing a smile. The man grunted before reaching into the van and grabbing the bag.
"Gba!" He hurled the bag at her.
She groaned as the heavy load hit her fragile figure. "Hmph!" Either the man was blind or he just ignored the fact that her waistline couldn't be more than twenty inches. She made sure to give him the stink eye and continued as she climbed the stairs only for the bag's strap to get caught with her feet and whoosh!
Her face kissed the floor.
***
Betty cringed as the tall kid smash her face on the last stair.
"That must hurt like a bitch!" she shouted across the balcony. "Are you okay?"
The tall kid jumped up, wincing a bit, but waved in response. "Yeah! I'm fine. I just-I didn't fall"
Betty chuckled.
Right! You didn't.
"You didn't? So what was that?"
"That was...We have a mutual understanding. My face and the floor."
"Wow...That's new. Considering you just arrived like ten minutes ago. The floor must really like you."
The girl laughed, shrugging lightly then bent to pick the bag up.
"I love your bag! Fan of pink?" Betty asked, elated. She was the first to start a conversation with the new neighbours of course she was excited.
The latter snorted in response. "No. Yuck! I hate this colour. Blue for life. This is my mama's."
Betty pouted leaning against the railing "Well now I'm offended. I happen to love that colour".
"Good for you." she shrugged in response but a small smile tugged at her lips.
"I'm Elizabeth."
"Tokunbo."
"Nice! I'm calling you Toks."
Tokunbo adjusted the bag strap and then nodded. "See you."
***
Foreign expressions used-
*Aye o- The world! (An exclamation common to the Yorubas)
*Olorun mi o!- My God
*Gba! - Take/ here you go.
Neal Kowalski is in thorough shit. His life is in danger, his reputation on the line and his company on wobbly stakes. While the people see a shy stuttering billionaire, owner of Kowalski Inc, very few know about the man behind the stutter, his dark past and haunting demons. And Dorothy Lane is determined to find out. As his ex-best friend, Dorothy Lane is assigned as a personal guard to Neal. She ignores the thickening tension between them, determined to prove to the world and her parents, that she is more than just a wild child. She will protect Neal from those who threaten his life even if it meant she would lose hers. But no one told her anything about Protecting Neal from himself. And Dorothy finds this out the hard way.
Elin spent twenty years deeply loving her husband, finally marrying him just as she'd always dreamed. But reality shattered her illusions—he wasn't the man she believed. Instead, he callously destroyed her family, crushing her heart beyond repair. At her lowest point, Ruben, equally betrayed that night, approached her steadily. "Marry me, Elin. I'll help you take revenge." Yet, after their wedding, she quickly discovered he was dangerously unpredictable. "I made a mistake. Let's divorce..." Ruben slid his arm possessively around her waist, whispering a chilling promise, "Only in death."
Dear readers, this book has resumed daily updates. It took Sabrina three whole years to realize that her husband, Tyrone didn't have a heart. He was the coldest and most indifferent man she had ever met. He never smiled at her, let alone treated her like his wife. To make matters worse, the return of the woman he had eyes for brought Sabrina nothing but divorce papers. Sabrina's heart broke. Hoping that there was still a chance for them to work on their marriage, she asked, "Quick question,Tyrone. Would you still divorce me if I told you that I was pregnant?" "Absolutely!" he responded. Realizing that she didn't mean shit to him, Sabrina decided to let go. She signed the divorce agreement while lying on her sickbed with a broken heart. Surprisingly, that wasn't the end for the couple. It was as if scales fell off Tyrone's eyes after she signed the divorce agreement. The once so heartless man groveled at her bedside and pleaded, "Sabrina, I made a big mistake. Please don't divorce me. I promise to change." Sabrina smiled weakly, not knowing what to do...
Her fiance and her best friend worked together and set her up. She lost everything and died in the street. However, she was reborn. The moment she opened her eyes, her husband was trying to strangle her. Luckily, she survived that. She signed the divorce agreement without hesitation and was ready for her miserable life. To her surprise, her mother in this life left her a great deal of money. She turned the tables and avenged herself. Everything went well in her career and love when her ex-husband came to her.
On the day of their wedding anniversary, Joshua's mistress drugged Alicia, and she ended up in a stranger's bed. In one night, Alicia lost her innocence, while Joshua's mistress carried his child in her womb. Heartbroken and humiliated, Alicia demanded a divorce, but Joshua saw it as yet another tantrum. When they finally parted ways, she went on to become a renowned artist, sought out and admired by everyone. Consumed by regret, Joshua darkened her doorstep in hopes of reconciliation, only to find her in the arms of a powerful tycoon. "Say hello to your sister-in-law."
Linsey was stood up by her groom to run off with another woman. Furious, she grabbed a random stranger and declared, "Let's get married!" She had acted on impulse, realizing too late that her new husband was the notorious rascal, Collin. The public laughed at her, and even her runaway ex offered to reconcile. But Linsey scoffed at him. "My husband and I are very much in love!" Everyone thought she was delusional. Then Collin was revealed to be the richest man in the world. In front of everyone, he got down on one knee and held up a stunning diamond ring. "I look forward to our forever, honey."
The day Raina gave birth should have been the happiest of her life. Instead, it became her worst nightmare. Moments after delivering their twins, Alexander shattered her heart-divorcing her and forcing her to sign away custody of their son, Liam. With nothing but betrayal and heartbreak to her name, Raina disappeared, raising their daughter, Ava, on her own.Years later, fate comes knocking when Liam falls gravely ill. Desperate to save his son, Alexander is forced to seek out the one person he once cast aside. Alexander finds himself face to face with the woman he underestimated, pleading for a second chance-not just for himself, but for their son. But Raina is no longer the same broken woman who once loved him.No longer the woman he left behind. She has carved out a new life-one built on strength, wealth, and a long-buried legacy she expected to uncover.Raina has spent years learning to live without him.The question is... Will she risk reopening old wounds to save the son she never got to love? or has Alexander lost her forever?